Orkneyinga Saga: The History of the Earls of Orkney (Penguin Classics)

by Anonymous

Other authorsPaul Edwards (Translator), Hermann Palsson (Translator)
Paperback, 1981

Status

Available

Call number

839.68

Collection

Publication

Penguin Classics (1981), Edition: Reprint, 256 pages

Description

Written around AD 1200 by an unnamed Icelandic author, the Orkneyinga Saga is an intriguing fusion of myth, legend and history. The only medieval chronicle to have Orkney as the central place of action, it tells of an era when the islands were still part of the Viking world, beginning with their conquest by the kings of Norway in the ninth century. The saga describes the subsequent history of the Earldom of Orkney and the adventures of great Norsemen such as Sigurd the Powerful, St Magnus the Martyr and Hrolf, the conqueror of Normandy. Savagely powerful and poetic, this is a fascinating depiction of an age of brutal battles, murder, sorcery and bitter family feuds.

User reviews

LibraryThing member antiquary
Striking for the grim intensity with which warriors fought for control of these little islands. Yet the author clearly also respected some figures who tried to maintain the peace.
LibraryThing member isabelx
Ill-fortune followed
when the Earls fought,
many a hard lesson learned,
many a life lost;
where the spear-shower fell,
there fought our friends;
many a dear on that day
lay dead at Roberry.


Written in Iceland around 1200 AD and thought to have been updated in 1234-5 when some prominent men from Orkney were
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visiting Iceland, this is the story of the Earls of Orkney, from the 9th century to the early 13th century.

The Earls of Orkney were subject to both the Scottish and Norwegian kings, since the earldom included Caithness in the far north of Scotland as well as the Orkneys and Shetland, which were ruled by Norway. There were usually two or more earls competing to increase their share of the land, while also co-operating uneasily in the defence of the whole earldom, and the Earls went to whichever king seemed most sympathetic to their cause when they needed someone to arbitrate about how the islands should be split between various uncles and nephews, brothers or cousins.

As well as farming, trading, making and breaking alliances and burning their enemies alive in their farmhouses, the Earls were viking raiders. Their summers were often spent raiding in Scotland, England, Wales, Ireland and Norway, as well as the islands around the coast of Britain from the Isle of May and the Hebrides to the Isle of Man, Anglesey and even the Scilly Isles. Earls of Orkney were present at the Battle of Stamford Bridge in 1066 fighting for the Norwegian king, and a later Earl went on a pilgrimage to the holy land, sailing his ships as far as Constantinople and fighting against Saracens and Africans when his men plundered a large cargo ship in the Mediterranean.
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LibraryThing member DinadansFriend
there are several interesting threads in the Orkneyinga, and the literary quality is higher than the Faroe Islander Saga. The sad tale of Rognvald and his dog being the most intrusive in my memory. The Norse influence in Scots history is far too often downplayed, and this is a restorative dose for
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those who believe in the "Celticness" of the Scots' heritage. A fine read.
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Language

Original language

Icelandic

Original publication date

1978 (English: Palsson & Edwards)
1873 (English)
1200 (circa, original manuscript)

Physical description

256 p.; 5.1 inches

ISBN

0140443835 / 9780140443837

UPC

000140443835

Local notes

DKR

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